Dream Distributors to start operations in mid-2018

The Kane County Board announced Nov. 14 the selection of Dream Hub/PKE Enterprises to operate a countywide food hub.

The food hub will operate under the name of Dream Distributors and will be headquartered adjacent to Dream Kitchen, 1544 Fleetwood Drive, Elgin, which functions as a commercial food processing incubator kitchen. The Dream Kitchen location will undergo an expansion of 3,000 square feet in order to allow for the new enterprise, Kevin Echevarria, CEO of Dream Hub, stated in a news release.

Food hubs exist as a “crucial, but often invisible, part of the local food system,” Echevarria stated in an email. Food hubs offer production, distribution and marketing services to small farms.

Dream Distributors will assist farmers with logistical concerns regarding planting, harvesting, transportation and creating wholesale channels to sell their products to businesses, such as restaurants. Echevarria went on to say that some operations of Dream Distributors will start as early as May or June.

Kane County won’t be the only one to benefit. Food will be distributed to McHenry, DeKalb and DuPage counties as well.

“The goal of Dream Distributors is simple: to open new markets for our network of kitchen users and independent farmers,” Echevarria stated in an email. “We are a one-stop shop, able to deliver to institutions like public schools, private schools, senior living facilities, colleges, universities and more. We guarantee that the food we purchase is safe, traceable, and grown/produced by farmers using practices that we have deemed safe for the land, air and water around their farms.”